Aston Villa Rue Missed Chances As Wigan Make Their Point

Aston Villa welcomed Wigan Athletic to Villa Park with Martin O’Neill opting to keep faith with the same side that beat Portsmouth 1-0 in midweek.

That meant a start for Wednesday’s match-winner Emile Heskey, who faced the club he left only eight days previously.

Wigan, meanwhile, welcomed back Chris Kirkland and Titus Bramble to the starting lineup, after the duo missed the draw with Liverpool, although injury forced Amr Zaki out.

Yet it was former Wigan favourite Heskey who was to go the closest in the opening exchanges as Villa began the game brightly.

A free kick swung into the area by Gareth Barry was almost converted by the England striker but he just failed to connect with the ball.

Just shy of the half hour mark, strike partner Gabriel Agbonlahor came even closer. The Villa man’s header looked to be heading goalwards but was cleared off the line by Michael Brown, and Wigan survived.

Yet Wigan posed a threat of their own and Daniel De Ridder worried Brad Friedel, racing down the right flank before shooting low which the American stopper was equal to.

However, the visitors were to come even closer and might even have headed in to the break ahead.

A Maynor Figueroa header looked to be destined for the back of the net but was denied at the last by Brad Friedel who did wonderfully well to tip his effort over the bar.

Steve Bruce changed things at half-time sending on new signing Hugo Rodallega for De Ridder but it was Villa who might have scored shortly after the break.

A Barry cross found Zat Knight in the box but his header came back off the post when the defender really ought to have scored, and there was no-one to slot home the rebound.

Whilst Villa continued to dominate, Wigan still posed a threat on the break, Mido hitting one on the volley which flew straight at Friedel.

A frustrated O’Neill opted to changes things on the hour mark, sending on the fit again John Carew for Craig Gardner as he searched for the breakthrough.

The Norwegian almost scored within minutes of his arrival. Another Barry cross found the striker in the box but his overhead kick flew well wide.

Still Villa pressed, a James Milner free kick caused utter panic in the Wigan box with the visitors clearing a Heskey effort off the line.

Minutes later and Villa were awarded another free kick in a dangerous area after a Michael Brown clearance fell to Kirkland which the referee deemed a back pass much to the horror of the visitors.

The free kick came to Carew whose effort was cleared off the line by Paul Scharner. Yet the rebound fell to Luke Young who volleyed it goalwards but incredibly Scharner cleared again much to Villa’s disbelief.

Somehow an obdurate Wigan hung on and O’Neill and Villa will rue their missed chances and in particular, the absence of the suspended Ashley Young who might just have made the difference.

Aston Villa: Friedel, Cuellar, Knight, Davies, Luke Young, Gardner (Carew, 62), Petrov, Barry, Milner, Heskey, Agbonlahor.

Wigan: Kirkland, Melchiot, Bramble, Boyce, Figueroa, De Ridder (Rodallega, 46), Cattermole, Scharner (Watson, 77), Brown, Koumas, Mido.

Gill Clark, Goal.com